Claude Giroux and the Flyers took the banner as a ‘slap in the face’

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Mike Petraglia
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October 7, 2011 @ 2:08 am
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Claude Giroux is one of the holdovers from the Flyers team that was dispatched by the Bruins and then dismantled in the summer. These Flyers who traded captain Mike Richards[1] and Jeff Carter[2] have been remade. But Giroux was on that team last spring and he remembered how it felt last May when the Bruins sent them packing.

He also watched as the Bruins used that four-game sweep as a springboard to the Stanley Cup[3] title they celebrated Thursday night with a banner-raising ceremony.

“Coming to a game here, especially the first game of the season when they are raising the banner, it’s a slap in the face and its motivation for a little payback even though it’s the first game of the season,” Giroux said. “It’s good for our ego and everybody was ready to go tonight.”

Giroux put his money where he mouth was by scoring a power play goal with less than two minutes left in the first. That was followed a minute late by a goal from Jakub Voracek. On Giroux’s goal it was another newcomer who played a big role – Jaromir Jagr – who fed a speeding Giroux down the slot.

“Yeah I think that he saw that I had speed,” Giroux said. “I don’t really remember what happened, it happened so quick. I made the inside move and I was able to beat that defenseman and take it to the net.”

It’s just one game but the Bruins’ sweep in May netted a lot of change in Philly, including Ilya Bryzgalov, the new $30 million goalie for the Flyers. And for one night, it paid off for Philly.

“I mean everyone was pretty excited and nervous and it turned out great,” Giroux said. “Obviously Bryz had the key saves at the end to make sure we got that win.”

Those saves on Nathan Horton[4] and David Krejci[5] were just the kind of game-stoppers Bruins fans remember Tim Thomas[6] making last spring en route to the Stanley Cup title.

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